[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 11316]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   CREATING A SENSIBLE, MULTILATERAL, AMERICAN RESPONSE TO TERRORISM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Feeny). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) is recognized for 
5 minutes.
  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, in their public speeches about the war in 
Iraq, President Bush and Vice President Cheney often invoke the notion 
of sacrifice and responsibility. They insist that every American 
support their war in Iraq, and those that do not are labeled un-
American, traitors, even treasonous.
  According to this model, then, it follows that the White House would 
encourage patriotic, trustworthy companies to carry out the 
reconstruction of Iraq's war-torn infrastructure, their schools and 
hospitals, public buildings, roads and more. But that is just not 
happening.
  Halliburton, which has been awarded reconstruction contracts left and 
right, does not seem terribly motivated by Bush and Cheney's notion of 
sacrifice and responsibility. Perhaps all those no-bid contracts have 
gone to their heads, or perhaps Halliburton is still reeling from the 
fumes of the millions of gallons of gasoline it has been contracted to 
import into Iraq, one of many hefty contracts specifically coordinated 
by Dick Cheney's office.
  You may recall that Vice President Cheney is the former CEO of 
Halliburton. The problem is that, once again, the Vice President has 
lied to the American people about his involvement with his old 
employer, an employer that still pays him nearly $200,000 each year in 
deferred salary and with whom he holds nearly 500,000 company shares.
  On September 4 of last year, Vice President Cheney said on ``Meet the 
Press,'' ``As Vice President, I have absolutely no influence of, 
involvement of, knowledge of in any way, shape or form of contracts let 
by the Corps of Engineers or anybody else in the Federal Government.''
  But that statement deeply contradicts an internal Pentagon e-mail 
obtained by Time Magazine, sent by an Army Corps of Engineers official 
on March 5, 2003, stating that the Vice President's office specifically 
coordinated a recent multibillion dollar contract in Iraq with 
Halliburton. That is the Vice President's office.
  The e-mail specifies that Undersecretary of Defense Douglas Feith had 
appallingly ``coordinated'' the contract with the Vice President's 
office.
  I wonder if Vice President Cheney's coordination of lucrative 
contracts for his former employer appeals to the same high patriotic 
standards that he regularly invokes for the rest of us in his speeches. 
Or perhaps there is a double standard at work, a policy of patriotism 
when it is convenient, and another policy of sheer greed and 
selfishness when Halliburton comes knocking on the door with its 
$200,000 in annual deferred salary for the Vice President.
  There has to be a better way, because the Bush doctrine of cronyism 
has been tried; and it has failed utterly. It is time for a new 
security strategy, one that emphasizes brains instead of brawn, depends 
on quality and sincerity in all business negotiations, and one that is 
consistent with the best American values.
  I have introduced H. Con. Res. 392, legislation to create a SMART 
security platform for the 21st century. SMART stands for Sensible, 
Multilateral, American Response to Terrorism. SMART treats war as an 
absolute last resort. It fights terrorism with stronger intelligence 
and multilateral partnerships that control the spread of weapons of 
mass destruction with a renewed commitment to nonproliferation; and it 
aggressively invests in the development of impoverished nations, with 
an emphasis on women's health and education.
  The United States can no longer afford foreign presidents watching as 
our national leaders reward their buddies with contracts worth billions 
of dollars and then turn around and call dissenters unpatriotic and un-
American. Instead, let us rely on the very best of America, our 
commitment to peace, our commitment to freedom, our compassion for the 
people of the world, and our capacity for multilateral leadership.
  Let us be smart about our future. SMART security is tough, SMART 
security is pragmatic and patriotic, and it will keep America safe.

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